Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7czq Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-28T03:36:22.964Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The natural radioactivity in vicinity of the brown coal mine Tusnica – Livno, BiH

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 June 2009

J. Barescut ,
L. Saracevic ,
D. Samek ,
A. Mihalj  and
N. Gradascevic
L. Saracevic
Affiliation:
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University Sarajevo, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
D. Samek
Affiliation:
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University Sarajevo, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
A. Mihalj
Affiliation:
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University Sarajevo, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
N. Gradascevic
Affiliation:
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University Sarajevo, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Get access

Abstract

Coal mine Tusnica is located in South-West part of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the municipality Livno. Coal mine Tusnica consists of two surface coal mines. The first one is brown coal surface deposit called Drage and second one is lignite deposit called Table. The brown coal deposit shows increased levels of natural radionuclides. The highest absorbed dose rate is recorded in the center of the surface coal mine Tusnica-Drage (500 nGy h-1) as result of the increased content of uranium and radium in coal (average specific activity of U-238 is 623 ± 23 Bq kg-1 and Ra-226 is 1191 ± 5 Bq kg-1). Levels of natural radionuclides in the vicinity of the surface deposit Drage in agricultural soil (about 3 km of the centre mine) are slightly increased due to the use of the coal ash and coal dust for fertilization of the land (U-238 is 142 ± 11 Bq kg-1 and Ra-226 is 197 ± 2 Bq kg-1). Obtained results in soil-plant-animal products chain does not show significantly increased levels of natural radionuclides due to the fact that mentioned radionuclides, in general, have a low transfer factors in soil-plant-animal products chain.

Type
Research Article
Information
Radioprotection , Volume 44 , Issue 5: ECORAD 2008 - Radioecology and Environmental Radioactivity , 2009 , pp. 315 - 320
Copyright
© EDP Sciences, 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

H.A. Amer, S. Shawky, M.I. Hussein, M.L. Abd El-Hady, J. Environ. Monit. 4, 583–587 (2002)
Bem, H., Wieczorkowski, P., Budzanowski, M., J. Environ. Radioactivity 61, 191–201 (2002). CrossRef
Manolupoulou, M. and Papastefanou, C., J. Environ. Radioactivity 16, 261–271 (1992). CrossRef
Papastefanou, C. and Charalambous, S., Health Phys. 46, 293–302 (1984). CrossRef
Cressie, N.A.C., Mathematical Geology 22, 239–252 (1990). CrossRef
Samek D., L. Saracevic, A. Mihalj, N. Gradascevic, “Estimation of the External Gamma Dose Rate from Natural Radionuclides on the Territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina”, Proceedings of the 5th Symposium of the Croatian Radiation Protection Association, Stubicke Toplice, 2003, edited by I.C. Bronic, S. Miljanic and B. Obelic (HDZZ-CRPA, Zagreb, 2003) p. 296–301.
United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR), Sources, Effects and Risk of Ionizing Radiation (Report to the General Assembly, with Scientific Annexes, United Nations, New York, 2000).